Apple Inc Reportedly Set to Roll Out iTunes Radio in September

September would really be an interesting month for Apple Inc. According to AdAge, an advertising industry Website, the technology firm would launch its streaming music service called iTunes Radio that month. The service would initially be introduced in the US. There is no timetable yet about when it would be brought to other markets.

Apple announced the service in June during its WWDC event. However, it did not specify any launch date, although it hinted that the debut would be this coming fall. It said iTunes Radio would be part of the release of the anticipated new operating system iOS 7 for Apple devices.

First major advertisers

According to AdAge, up to six companies have already committed to exclusive advertising deals on the platform for 12 months. Those include McDonald’s, Nissan, Procter & Gamble, and Pepsi. The Website even claimed that each deal involves about ‘single digit millions to tens of millions of dollars.’

Advertising on iTunes Radio has already been exclusively booked for the initial advertisers until the end of the year, according to reports. After the period, the service would open its doors to other interested advertisers. But Apple would reportedly impose a single condition: the new advertisers should agree to invest at least $1m in ad placements.

Ads would be the main source of income for iTunes Radio. Those are set to run across iPads, iPhones, PCs, and television via Apple TV. One audio ad would be played every quarter hour, while one video would be aired every hour. An ad-free version of iTunes Radio would be offered to subscribers of cloud music service iTunes Match.

Possible competitor

Sources claim that iTunes Radio would not directly compete with existing streaming music services, which include Rhapsody, Rdio, Deezer, and Spotify. It would not even give on-demand access if listeners prefer to choose songs or albums to listen to. It would be a personal radio service that would enable listeners to create their choice of streaming music stations based on categories like artists, genres, and songs.

The closest existing service to be its direct competitor would be Nokia Music App, which is preloaded on the Finnish brand’s Windows Phone smartphones. However, unlike iTunes Radio, Nokia Music App is completely ad-free. That is because Nokia intends to use the portal just as another feature that would entice consumers to buy its handsets.

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